INCO first became involved with the Goro Nickel Project in 1992, and had eventually commissioned a pilot plant at the site. The main pilot plant was mainly constructed in order to provide tests on high pressure acid leaching for nickel and cobalt recovery. During 1995, INCO had continued its main research towards building the Goro Metallurgical facility in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. This resulted in developing the design and eventually testing it at a bench scale and within a mini plant. Part of this progress was aimed a pilot testing this process at 1/80,000 scale at INCO's Port Colborne Facility. This at the time had resulted in building a pilot plant that was built a 1/1,000 scale in New Caledonia where it operated from October, 1999, through April, 2002. The main reason for locating this pilot plant on-site was designed to give access to all ore types and exposures to local tropical climates. INCO's patent new process for nickel and cobalt recovery was officially built around pressure acid leaching and solvent extraction. The main design of this commercial plant was aimed at having a total recovery of 93% for Nickel and 91% for Cobalt. A six phase process was additionally designed from this technology research that gave way towards making limonite pulped, while the hard saprolite had been crushed and grounded to form a slurry, while rejecting barren oversize material. These two material that consitituted ore were also blended in order to create leach feed. Pressure acid leaching was rather carried out at very high temperatures of 270*C with the advantage of shortening leach time and reducing the number of autoclaves needed. Much of the nickel-cobalt solution that's obtained through this process is purified by raising the pH to precipitate impurities. From here, the solution would end up passing through the primary SX circuit using a novel reagent to produce a pure nickel/cobalt/zinc chloride solution. Zinc which become produced than becomes removed by an ion exchange circuit, and the nickel and cobalt are finally separated from the resulting chloride solution in the secondary solvent extraction circuit. Its at the very end of these processes that two pure chloride solutions of nickel and cobalt become obtained. The pure nickel chloride SX solution is then subjected to pyrohydrolysis at over 800*C, similar to fluid-bed roasting. This had after produce a nickel oxide and also regenerated the hydrochloric acid used in the SX circuit for stripping.

These recoveries became so effective that in 2002, INCO would decided to move forward with its Goro Project when 1.4 billion US was place, and had its own anticipated production start up for 2004. Some stoppages were made towards this project in 2002, when a comprehensive review was done in regards to the cost and had re-examined the project. it was by 2004, when INCO released a statement on its Goro Nickel-Cobalt Project that it would move forward with predevelopment planning In making Goro produce 60,000 tonnes of nickel oxide and between 4,300 to 5,000 tonnes of Cobalt in the form of carbonate. Goro at this time was aimed at providing a mine life of nearly 20 years of mining and would end up increasing over time. The proven and probable ore reserves were also now measured at nearly 120 million tonnes of ore grading 1.48% Ni, and 0.12% Co. A total of 75 millions tonnes was also measured and indicated, which had also graded 1.49% Ni, and 0.12 Co. An inferred resource calculation was also made on the mine that amounted to 128 million tonnes grading 1.7% Ni, and 0.1% Co.

Further planning was made in 2003, when INCO had place a predevelopment assessment plan on its Goro Nickel-Cobalt Project in New Caledonia. These plans were aimed at mining the pit through a series of benches from the west to the east, which followed the basement rock from low to high. It would also facilitate pit drainage and allow in-pit storage of the overburden, and ultimately tailings that were produce after processing. Approximately 12 million tonnes of material would end up being moved each year, while overburden would be segregated and stockpiled if it suited for use during revegetation or for construction of haulage and other roadways. A feed plant was also being built niorthwest of the mine site, in which two kinds of ore had been trucked from the open-pit to the plant. Limonite along with saprolite would also be stockpiled individually and pulped by crushing and ball milling in separate circuits. Slurries which are produce from these circuits would also be stored individually in agitated tanks but combined as they are pumped througha 700-mm diameter pipeline to the processing plant at about 4 km to the southwest. As the slurry reaches the processing plant it would than be preheated and thickened to 32% solids. From here it would then be preheated to 270*C and enter three parallel autoclave curcuits where Pressure Acid Leaching will take place using sulphuric acid. In order to complete this, it would be also followed by five splash stages to let down the pressure and recover heat. From here the leach residue would also be washed in six sequential CCD thickener. A process stablaization pond would also provide surge capacity following the CCD circuit. This would also allow the downstream circuits in the plant to operate continuously when varying numbers of autoclaves are in service.

Development on the Goro Nickel Mine was first started in 2004, with an anticipated production start up in 2007. It was by February, 2006, when the much needed engineering was nearly over 70 done, with about 1,600 workers on site. A strategized plan for the processing plant was made and also completed during the pre-development season of 2006. Development at the time was also focus on designing the much need residue storage facility and to complete road realignment. The Goro Nickel Mine is considered to be apart of the rich laterite ore bodies which extend with the saprolite horizon and exposed bedrock structure. Construction of the Goro Nickel Mine was commenced when 2,000 skilled Philippines had arrived in the making of this mine site. It was also at this time when INCO had also reported that the Goro Nickel-Cobalt Mine had hosted 54 million tonnes grading 1.53% Ni and 0.12% Co, plus measured and indicated resources of 99 million tonnes grading 1.4% Ni and 0.14% Co. Some problems had shortly came in the delay of production as contracts had told INCO that It would cost nearly 34 to 45% more than the $1.45 billion U.S, estimated in March, 2001 feasibility study.

Iron oxides which are chiefly Laterite and Magnesium rich saprolite is commonly known to make up the rich Nickel and Cobalt Deposits at Goro. Its also a flat lying near surface and also measuring 45- to 50-m thick, which is covered by iron oxide crust at the surface and a high magnetite zone below, which measures 10 to 20 m thick. The first of these ore zones are commonly 10- m thick limonite layer, that has a grade of 1.5% Ni. A transition zone between the limonite and underlying saprolite is also known to be enriched with cobalt and magnesium. The foremost bottom layer is entirely made up of saprolite that is approximately 5 m thick with much higher nickel grades, averaging in excess of 2 to 3% Ni. Much of the ore-body is also considered to slope gently from 330 m above sea level in the north to 200 in the south. Predictions on its mining were given to commence in the much lower evaluation and proceed uphill with the slope. This idea was mainly designed as a way to collect mine water and runoff without causing interference to the mining sequence. Before mining would become, the vegetation will be first removed and the topsoil stored in order to provide soil for reclamation. With this, the overburden will then be excavated and stored, and about 70% of it will be used to build access and haulage roads, tailings dam, and other earth work. Mining will also mainly be done by the use of a truck and shovel fleet that would remove the ore from a projected open cut operation. Predevelopment planning was also aimed at constructing a haulage level above the limonite layer, while haulage trucks would be loaded with limonite or overburden.

Plans to remove the saprolite portion of the ore-body were made to utilize much smaller excavators with 4.4-m3 buckets that would travel along this transition layer. These foremost excavators would also be responsible for digging downward into the ore-body before dumping their buckets up on the haulage level where the saprolite can be loaded onto trucks by the larger excavators. The development of the Bi level and haulage road arrangements were among the most important tasks in this construction phase. It was also reported that only one haul road was to be built in order to be also maintained on rainy, tropical climates, to save huge capital on costs. A second important thing about this development was that smaller excavators would utilize to traverse the saprolite, due to its very rough nature. This utilization would also down size on the expense of wear and tear which can also be a fairly costly factor in running a mining operation.

The Goro Nickel Mine was first owned by INCO who had mainly conducted explorations at the time. Diamond drilling would result in encouraging grades of nickel that amounted to nearly 120 millions tonnes of ore grade nickel grading 1.48% Ni per tonne. It was later taken over by Vale who currently has 69% interest in the Goro Nickel Property. Over the years, extensive exploratory work was done on the Goro Nickel Deposit that resulted in calculating a reserve of 60 million tonnes, grading 1.6% Ni. Feasibility studies were shortly after commenced in order to evaluate the mine for its potential development as an open pit operation. The near surface deposit had proved to be extremely expensive that would end up costing billion in capital to develop this mine. However, a decision was made in regards to developing this ore-body that had planned to bring the mine into production by 2010. Assessments at the time were also made in regards to production and the capacity for the project was made at producing 66,000 tonnes of Nickel, and between 4,300 to 5,000 tonnes of cobalt.

Goro is among one of the best known laterite ore-bodies in the world with its high scale open pit estimation of 60 million tonnes. These are both considered as estimated measured and indicated ore reserves to date that have been evaluated within the project. Much of the ore that comes from Goro is known to also be taken from development of an open cut mine that's designed on a sloping ridge of the Plaine des Lacs. Nickel and Cobalt that are produce from this sloped ridge are known to commonly be transported by a conveyor line to Prony Bay. From here, the Nickel Oxide along with the cobalt ore, were shipped to the refinery in Dalian, China for further processing. Leaching of the ore to extract the nickel-cobalt content has been an ongoing achievement with the use of sulfuric acid that is made and store on site. Waste material is also commonly stored and cleaned before being emitted through a long pipe into the sea. A joint venture on the project is also considered to have been made between Sumic Nickel Netherlands, Sumitomo Metal Mining, and Mitsui that own 21% interest, which the remaining 10% interest is held by New Caledonia.

Mining operations at the Goro Nickel-Cobalt Mine are conducted through opencast mining methods. These foremost open casts are additionally dug to a depth of 50 to 60 m, with an estimation of 4 million tonnes that can be produce each year. Most of the production to date is also concentrated on removing sub-surficial layers that have no commercial value. Production is also mainly taken up by the means of developing and hauling laterite-saprolite ore from these open cuts that are fairly sloped on a ridge. Hydralulic mining excavators are the principal machinery used for the development of this open pit operation, while haulage is being achieved by the use of dump trucks. Vale had implemented a mining life cycle of nearly 29 years at its Goro Nickel-Cobalt Project in New Caledonia. A reclamation strategy was also designed in which the pits will be filled and eventually replanted at the end of the mining life cycle in 2041.

Vale has additional designed and engineered a mining process that involves state-of-the-art, fourth generation, hydrometallurgical techniques that are designed to process laterite with nickel-cobalt content at lower production costs. This also has its own strategy on reducing impacts in relation to environmental problems that may rise from this project. Mine ore technically becomes screened and ground before being mixed with water to create a combined pulp of limonite and saprolite. Controls of chemical quantity and particle sizes Is also commonly undertake in order minimize the full control of an environmental disaster from happening. Pulp which is produced from the mining process is commonly conveyed by a pipe line that extends for a distance of 8km to the autoclave at the processing plant. When the plant reaches full production it will process nearly 536 tons of pulp per hour.

Geology Structural Geology and Lithology

The making of ore deposits is one of those timely processes that nearly takes over millions of years in creating. Ore deposits were shortly after created through the timely process of geological change that took place. With this change it had shortly after created the an ore deposit by the concentration of materials that were originally dispersed throughout the fresh rock. New Caledonia was not only in for the production of Nickel Bearing rock but had also developed around cobalt deposits in the late 1880's. With it, it had brought even more geological processes when supergene enrichment of copper deposits were considered as part of the next stage. The Island of New Caledonia, in the south pacific is commonly 400 km long and averages only about 40 km wide. Nickel deposits that average between 6 to 10% Nickel and 0.5 to 0.10% Co became the main product of the supergene enrichment process of copper deposition. The first of these discoveries were made by Garnier in 1865, which resulted in opening up small scale mines for the extraction of Nickel-Co-Cu. It was also prior to the discovery of the Sudbury Mining Camp when New Caledonia had dominated the Nickel and Cobalt Markets as both of these metals had been steady in market value. Over 6,000 tonnes of this ore was taken which produce large amounts in revenue that produce a value of $600,000 annually. About one third of New Caledonia's 20,000 km area is known to consist of ultramafic rocks, which are composed of variable amounts of olivine, orthopyroxene, and clinopyroxene. Some of the most common rocks are harzburgites and dunites with local therzolites, and wehrlites. These ophiolitic ultramafic masses became emplaced oligocene time on top of Mesozoic graywackes, shales, and sandstones, and Eocene Basalts by a southwestward thrusting. The veneer of these ultramafic rocks may originally have been a single, more extensive slabs of oceanic crust thrust over the older units. Olivine had also become deposited within these rocks as it has its own composition of Fo90, Fa10, and contained about 0.3% Ni, and the Orthopyroxene has a composition of En90-Fs10 with about 0.03% to 0.06% Ni. It was at the end of this process when these rocks became more or less serpentinized to the hydrous magnesium silicates chrystotile and lizardite, which both are fibrous serpentines. Much of this hydration event that took placeover time had become more complex as some of the serpentinization had occurred before emplacement of these rocks, on what was once known as the Sea Floor, and were mostly related to the flat faults, and is tectonic in origin, with minor amount of veinlet control and could possibly be postemergence in age. Nickel and Cobalt is largely found within the Serpentine Rocks that is approximately the same as that of the pseudomorphed anhydrous silicates, that went under serpentinization. This at the time had involved further composition as ultramafic minerals would end up accompanying by the process of rearrangement and had only minor loss of constituents. The serpentine than had weathered to a much darker-reddish laterite that cane be observed in this picture due to its red mineralized soils and sands. Some sections where laterization is complete, the original magnesium silicates if the ultramafics have been destroyed, and with it, it had removed the silica, calcium, and magnesium. In other cases, Mg0 and Si02, have also been almost completely removed from the much pisolitic irony crust that's commonly found at the surface, but had increase gradually where Nickel also had increased, the locus of garnierite deposition. Some of the best Garnierite is commonly known for being associated with devoid of iron that is more or less than 0.3%, but are commonly considered to contain 10 to 40% Mg0 and Ni0 at 0 to 50%. Some of the world class nickel ore are known for grading between 2 to 3% Ni, and some of the best grade of nickel composition rocks are obtained from the bottom of the blanket. These foremost nickel grades which are deemed high, are commonly associated with serpentine garnierite cement blocks of peridotite, or the serpentinite replacement of it. In contribution to these deposits, Cr203 in chromite, Al203 from clinopyroxene and plagioclasem and Fe203 are considered to be also concentrated within the laterite surface exposures.Garnierite is commonly referred as nickeliferous bearing type of serpentine that is also a principal ore mineral within the region of New Caledonia Island. Compositions of chemical elements are known to also range between Mg, Fe, Ni3, Si205, and Zr. Much of the make of Garnierite is commonly known to also act as a replacement when nickel replace magnesium and is brownish in color that’s referred as noumeite. Other nickeliferous serpentine such as nepouite is also classified as an ore mineral, which nickel becomes a replacement to iron within its structure. Some nickel bearing montmorillonite is also referred as saponite which is known as pimelite, and is among the third nickel ore minerals within the New Caledonia Mining Camp. It also where the iron silicate become replaced by nickel that the ore becomes a much greenish color and is considered to be called Green Ore. Nickel is also commonly considered to sometimes replace the magnesium content which the ore becomes brown due to its properties that retain the iron oxide. In other words, brown ore is commonly referred as chocolate ore, which is the common material being mined to date. These are among the highest concentrates of Cobalt bearing rocks that make up nearly 10% Co that is present in an amorphous oxide mineraloid called asbolane, or cobaltiferous wad. Its also the dark black magnesium oxides that are commonly referred as pyrolusite and psilomelane, that have also been mined locally in smaller amounts. Some of the gauge minerals which are considered as waste material are known to include talc and sepiolite, that are the most common types of minerals. In some cases, small amounts of chalcedony is known for representing colloidal silica leached from the laterite deposition are also found in fractures cutting the serpentine series. Some studies which were aimed at determining unaltered serpentine and ultramafic show that much of the nickel and cobalt contents are found in the basement rock that are relatively uniform throughout the island of New Caledonia. Ore deposition and its presents are also known as favorite types of topography, and have become effected by weathering conditions over time. Much of the weathering process is known to fully be appreciated when its notice that it has been concentrated with the nickel ore ten to thirtyfold from materials that only contain 0.2 to 0.3% Ni. Processes at one point in time had work in order to control the concentration of nickel by topography in some ways. Some of the best grading ore of nickel are commonly found on gentle slopes and on saddles of spurs that extend from the main ridges being worked.